Easter Sunday in Sri Lanka 253 people were killed and over 400 injured as a result of a targeted attack primarily against Christians and tourists. These bombings occurred in several Churches and hotels throughout the island. On a day when people were praising and praying others sought to create violence and chaos. Hearing this was incredibly troubling to me. As I sat in an Easter Service of my own I thought about those who were doing the same thing but at the wrong time and place. It caused sadness within me but also caused me to be grateful for where I am. I realized how often things like this happen across the world and even in this nation, albeit not on the same scale, yet I am fortunate enough to live in a place where I don't worry about such things. This, however, does not give me an excuse not to care. It is because of this that I originally sought out the GIP program. To prevent myself from falling in a cycle of apathy or an emotional catharsis for special news stories. During my time in this program, I have achieved what I set out to do, which is expanding the way I think about the world and putting systems in place to help me stay connected to the entirety of the world around me. So that events like the one which occurred on Easter Sunday is not the only thing I know about Sri Lanka, or the world around me.
November 11, 2018 was the 100th year anniversary to the end of WWI, also known as Armistice Day. During this day an array of Global Leaders, Citizens, and Presidents gathered to honor those who had fallen during this war, as well as celebrate its end. The leaders stood shoulder to shoulder, hand in hand, and walked together in order to show a sense of unity between these nations. Yet, our President was nowhere to be seen. He along with the President of Russia both missed this show of unity. Something which is concerning especially with the President's recent comments about nationalism. This leads to the meetings second agenda which was to remind the Nations of the importance of working together to prevent such a devastating tragedy from re-occurring. The President of France specifically addressed this by making remarks, some of which were directed at President Trump's comments regarding his favoritism towards Nationalism. Nationalism is too often seen ...
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